A Rookie In The Baseball Team Is Too Good [EN]: Chapter 404

86. Another Sunshine Day (6)

Exactly thirty minutes later.

Jisub was visiting the office of Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations.

He was there to report the list of the Nashville due diligence team, as decided at the director-level meeting.

“Hmm, not bad. With this composition, we can thoroughly examine the local preparations.”

The president of baseball operations slowly nodded, turning over the report one page at a time.

Then, he suddenly took off his glasses and turned his gaze to Jisub.

“But… Kim?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Is something wrong? You don’t seem to be concentrating today.”

“Are you talking about me?”

At that moment, Jisub felt a pang of guilt.

The president of baseball operations’s point was valid.

Long before entering this office, what had been filling Jisub’s head wasn’t the composition of the Nashville due diligence team.

‘John Llama is opposing the relocation?’

It wasn’t just that fact.

‘To not have known the inner thoughts of a colleague I see every day… Damn, I must have been pretty distracted.’

No matter how busy he was, Jisub had always made sure to check the thoughts of the people in the Future Strategy Planning Division.

What they were hoping for, what they were worried about, and what they were interested in.

If there seemed to be conflict, he would step in to mediate, and if there seemed to be concerns, he would approach them first to discuss them. Thanks to that, the Future Strategy Planning Division was able to demonstrate the best teamwork.

But he didn’t know the inner thoughts of John Llama, who was closest to him? Perhaps, as ‘Sakhalin Park’ Vice Chairman Park Hong-joo had said, Jisub had been out of it for a while.

‘Heh, Kim Jisub… you still have a long way to go. You got too relaxed after just one championship.’

Of course, he couldn’t just keep blaming himself.

The key was what to do from now on. How to calm his mind and how to solve the problems that would come.

As he was trying to gather his scattered thoughts, he heard an unexpected remark from Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations.

“Could it be… because of John Llama?”

He asked Jisub.

“That airhead is opposing the relocation to Nashville?”

* * *

At this point, Jisub hesitated slightly.

When the other party hit the nail on the head, he couldn’t immediately decide how to respond.

However, with just that momentary hesitation, Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations, was able to grasp quite a bit.

“So that’s how it is.”

The president of baseball operations clicked his tongue.

“John would be more than capable of that. I was expecting it to some extent.”

“Did you get any hints from him?”

To Jisub’s cautious question, the president of baseball operations lightly shook his head.

“No, there was nothing like that. However, it’s true that there are people inside and outside the team who oppose the relocation.”

Perhaps it was only natural.

“If they want to influence the team’s decision in any way… I was thinking that they would definitely come through John.”

You know that well, don’t you, Kim.

The president of baseball operations smiled bitterly.

“John has always been soft-hearted and easily swayed by those around him.”

“Yes, well, that’s…”

Jisub knew that story well too.

His pushover behavior didn’t discriminate between inside and outside the team.

He had been swindled out of a lot of money by people who approached him as friends, and there were more than a few cases where he had been saddled with unnecessary items.

Giving the Tampa Bay front office staff ’72 hours of chance’ felt like a relief in comparison.

Perhaps it was because his track record was so colorful.

“Kim, there’s nothing to worry about.”

The president of baseball operations was speaking very decisively.

“Leave the matter of John to me. I’ll call him in here soon and give him a scolding he won’t forget.”

“…You’re going to scold him?”

When Jisub’s eyes widened, the president of baseball operations nodded with a serious expression.

“Of course, that’s obvious. I can’t let John run wild this time. This will be the last stroke of luck for him.”

Luck. A once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck.

The president of baseball operations emphasized this greatly.

“Kim, meeting you was a great stroke of luck for him. If it weren’t for you, would the current Future Strategy Planning Division exist?”

“…”

“The existence of Lauren Ortega is also a tremendous stroke of luck. Thanks to her leading the lobbyist group in Nashville, John had the opportunity to lead the project, didn’t he?”

Luck in the team, which was Jisub.

Luck outside the team, which was Lauren.

With two strokes of luck overlapping, John Llama had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations, seemed to be judging it that way.

“In this situation, imagine John opposing the relocation. What would everyone say? That he kicked away the good fortune that came his way, that a guy with nothing to his name is running wild… The team will be in an uproar.”

The real scary thing is something else.

“More than anything… do you think our owner will stay still? His gaze towards John has improved a little now, but then there will be a real disaster.”

That’s when John Llama would be kicked out of the Taylor family, he said.

A son who doesn’t realize that luck has come his way. A son who is easily swayed by what others say.

Jeffrey Taylor’s patience was about to reach its limit.

“So we have to stop it this time. Whether we scold him, take away his credit card, or confine him to his house… Even if he can’t inherit the team owner’s seat, we have to prevent him from being kicked out of the house, right?”

Looking at the president of baseball operations, who was letting out a long sigh, Jisub could guess what he thought of John Llama.

‘He’s almost family. He’s family.’

Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations, had been with the Tampa Bay Rays since he was a young man in his twenties, so he would have seen John Llama since he was a snot-nosed kid.

He saw him enter school, enter college, and join the team as a new employee after graduation.

Although he was the son of his boss, he was like a close nephew. Brian Spann’s concern for him was understandable.

‘However…’

One thing bothered him.

After pondering that ‘one thing,’ Jisub eventually turned his gaze to the president of baseball operations.

“Sir.”

“Yes, speak.”

“Could you leave the matter of John Llama to me this time?”

“To Kim? No, why suddenly…”

The president of baseball operations initially tilted his head.

However, perhaps he realized that he was facing Jisub.

He soon put on a bright expression and asked again.

“Kim, do you perhaps… have a better idea?”

* * *

A few days later.

Jisub was blankly staring at the night sky from the balcony of a luxury hotel in Nashville, Tennessee.

“…”

This was the last day of the Tampa Bay Rays’s local due diligence activities.

From the meeting with the mayor of Nashville to the visit to the planned site for the new stadium, all the planned local investigations were completed.

Now, all that was left was to wait for the reports from each department of the Tampa Bay front office.

“Kim!”

Slightly past 9 p.m., David Wilson, who had been looking at his laptop in the room, approached Jisub.

“The marketing department’s due diligence report has been uploaded. The public affairs department also contacted us saying they would send it within 10 minutes.”

“Then is everything finished now? You’ve really worked hard.”

When Jisub patted him on the shoulder, David waved his hand and shook his head.

“Oh, hard work! If we’re talking about hard work, Kim has done more, hasn’t he? I don’t think you’ve been able to sleep much since you came here?”

That was true.

While ordinary employees could rest after finishing their assigned tasks, Jisub, who was the representative of the due diligence team, couldn’t.

The first night, he met with people from the lobbyist group to discuss negotiation strategies, and the second night, he met with local business people to hear their business plans.

Originally, a dinner with local politicians was scheduled for this day as well, but it was canceled due to a sudden schedule change on their side.

Lauren Ortega apologized several times, but Jisub was secretly grateful.

There was a limit to Jisub’s stamina.

“It certainly seems that there’s a big difference between having a lobbyist group locally and not having one.”

That was David Wilson’s impression.

“Since Ortega had already negotiated everything in advance, we just had to go and do our jobs. Wow, I didn’t expect the city officials to be so cooperative!”

“If an expert steps in, it’s different… is that what it is?”

“Yes, I felt something this time. If St. Petersburg had a lobbyist group, the Tampa Bay Rays might be playing baseball in a new stadium by now.”

David, who had worked only in baseball all his life, seemed to see the difference clearly.

“Looking at the reports that have come in so far, everyone seems to be in favor of moving the team to Nashville…”

Swoosh.

It was at this moment that David Wilson looked at Jisub with worried eyes.

“Kim, shouldn’t you talk to Llama now?”

“Yes? About what?”

When Jisub picked up a canned beer on the table and asked, David looked a little frustrated.

“Why are you pretending not to know? Kim, you know, don’t you? These days, that guy John Llama… he’s on the phone with the Cowbell Boys every day.”

The Cowbell Boys.

It was the oldest fan club in the Tampa Bay Rays.

It was also a group that included veteran pitcher Brett Evans and his close friends.

“I overheard them saying things like negotiations and protests… Oh, no, this won’t do. Kim, you have to stop him.”

“Heh, is there a reason to stop him?”

Jisub took a sip of beer and replied.

“During this due diligence period, didn’t John Llama fulfill his role faithfully? He was always talking to the Cowbell Boys after all the schedules were over.”

“That’s true, but didn’t the president of baseball operations say that he entrusted everything to Kim? If Llama does something unnecessary…”

David continued.

“Kim, please tell me. Why are you leaving Llama like that? With just one word from Kim, Llama would obediently back down.”

At David’s words, Jisub chuckled inwardly.

Brian Spann, the president of baseball operations, had said something similar.

‘Why are you saying you’ll leave him alone? Why are you saying you’ll watch? Have you forgotten what kind of guy John Llama is?’

However,

Jisub’s thoughts were a little different.

“David, I think John Llama has changed a lot. It’s no exaggeration to say that he’s a completely different person from when I first met him.”

“A different person? Llama?”

David had an unbelievable expression, but Jisub had his own reasons.

“Think back. At first, he only said things that made people frustrated… but after that, didn’t he change a lot? When he recruited Brett Evans, or when he persuaded Dexter Sullivan.”

“Well, certainly at that time…”

He persuaded Brett Evans by running around with his old colleagues.

He comforted Dexter Sullivan by cooking for him himself.

After that, John Llama gradually created his own role.

“It’s the same this time. I don’t think John Llama has been persuaded by the Cowbell Boys.”

Jisub continued.

“If that were the case, wouldn’t he have taken some action right away? That’s his original style.”

“That’s… right? He’s a friend who doesn’t take long to go from thought to action.”

At David’s words, Jisub slowly nodded. ‘That’s right.’

“This time, it’s taking a particularly long time. Rather than trying to do something right away, he’s just making phone calls here and there. That means he’s trying to find a way, and it means he’s being careful with his work.”

This was the part that bothered Jisub.

Unlike what people were saying, John Llama had been steadily changing.

And unlike people’s concerns, John Llama was showing a different pattern of behavior than usual.

“So I decided to wait patiently. Until John Llama comes up with his own answer. Until that friend starts to take some action.”

“I understand what you mean… but Kim, are you really okay with this?”

David still had a worried expression.

“What if John Llama causes a big accident? What if he holds a picket sign and protests in front of Tropicana Field tomorrow?”

If the owner’s son did that, a real disaster would break out, but Jisub’s reaction was relaxed.

“What do you mean, what do we do? We’ll just have to fix it somehow. We have some influence in the Tampa Bay Rays now, don’t we?”

“Wait a minute, Kim! We… both of us? Why are you including me?”

“Hey, why are you being like this? Aren’t we that close?”

Jisub crossed his arms and smiled slyly.

“And have you forgotten? During the White House visit a while ago… David and I were both indebted to John Llama, weren’t we?”

“Indebted? No, when did I become indebted… Ah.”

At this point, David clicked his tongue.

“Are you talking about taking care of my parents? Damn it, I didn’t know it would come back like this.”

David’s parents liked John Llama very much.

Just as David was sighing as he recalled his parents’ words.

Toc- toc- toc-

As if a knock was heard from outside, the tightly closed hotel door slowly opened.

And after a while, what appeared before Jisub and David’s eyes was John Llama Taylor himself.

“Llama, where are you coming from?”

Perhaps it was because he was a little upset that he had been unintentionally roped in, David’s tone in welcoming John Llama was quite blunt.

“Did you get a girlfriend without me knowing? You seem to be busy running around every night?”

Jisub smiled slightly at David’s barbed remark, but John Llama had a rather serious expression.

“I, I’m sorry. I thought I had finished the work I was assigned… Did I miss anything?”

“No, Llama. David is just saying that.”

Jisub said in a soft voice.

“But is something wrong? There are no more schedules today, why don’t you change into something more comfortable?”

At this time, John Llama was wearing a suit.

Jisub had changed into his training clothes, and David was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and shorts, but John Llama was dressed neatly as if he was going on a blind date.

“Ah, this?”

John Llama scratched the back of his head as if he was a little embarrassed.

But soon he began to look at Jisub with determined eyes.

“I have something I want to discuss with Kim… urgently.”

“Discuss? Is it urgent?”

“Yes, just 10 minutes! No, 5 minutes will do! Could you spare me some time?”

Looking at John Llama, who was speaking more politely than ever, Jisub was wearing a faint smile.

He could hear the guy’s inner thoughts in his ear.

[Kim will listen to my story seriously. Of course, what kind of person is Kim!]

[If I can persuade Kim, it’s not a dream to prevent the relocation.]

So far, so good.

What Jisub took to heart was this one phrase.